I Forgot How to Breathe (Harry Styles)

Prologue

Breathe in. Breathe out.

My steps got longer as I ran down the hill. Sweat was dripping from my forehead and I feel a slight hint of pain in my legs. I couldn't prevent myself from smiling. I loved the pain I felt in my muscles while running. I loved how my lungs felt like they were burning and the satisfaction I felt afterwards. It all meant that I was burning calories, building muscles, getting healthy and all that.

The trees passed on both sides of me as my phone told me that I had been running for 30 minutes, and so far 5 km. That reminded me that I had to turn around soon, otherwise I wouldn't have enough power left to run all the way home. The path was by now just a small strip of mud and I had to jump over a few stones and trees that had fallen on the path. If I ran just a little deeper into the forest, I'd get to the part of the forest that I loved. There, where the air got clean and quiet, and you no longer were able to hear any cars, where were I wanted to end up before turning around.

Suddenly I heard a loud bang and an intense pain appeared in my right leg. I started screaming and didn't have time to think before I fell with my head first into the mud. Dirt got into my mouth and I felt bruises on my cheeks and palms. I coughed and got up on my elbows, and when I looked over my shoulder I saw a man walking towards me.

What was happening with me? I tried to sit up but when I tried, the world started spinning and shadows appeared in the corners of my sight. I felt my leg pulsate and when I touched my thigh with my right hand I felt something wet. A scream got stuck in my throat when I looked at my hand and saw dark, red blood. It was everywhere, pulsating out of my leg. I lifted my head and looked at the man who now was only a few meters away from me.

"Help me!" I almost screamed, my voice cracking. I had panic. What the fuck was happening?

He took a few steps towards me. His eyes travelled over my body but besides from that he didn't do anything to help me.

"I don't know what's happening! Please help m-"

With a movement that seemed to be in a speed faster than the speed of light, he took out something from his pocket and before I could finish my sentence, I was interrupted by a second bang. For a millisecond I felt confused, then I saw that he pointed a gun towards me.

"Wha-" I begun, before being hit by a pain thousand times worse than the one in my leg. It was like all the air in my lungs were ripped out of my chest. When I looked down at my body I saw blood all over my shirt, and more were coming out from the left side of my stomach.

"Wha... what are you doing?..." I said, and suddenly my voice was weak and unstable. My sight got blurry as the shadows spread over my field of view, and I started to feel dizzy. I saw the man look at me one last time, before he turned around and slowly walked away. I could feel panic building up from inside when I tried to scream but didn't manage to make a single sound. Within a minute, I was all alone in the middle of a forest, with blood pulsating out from different parts of my body.

Breathe in. Breathe out.